Foldit is a new computer game for protein folders. I found out about it whilst managing my BOINC account; my computer runs calculations for scientific and medical research programmes – rosetta@home, boincsimap, SETI@home and malariacontrol.net. Rosetta@home is about protein folding, design and docking, and Foldit uses the same program for the human effort.
The game is already popular (i.e. there are many players) and folding is accompanied by both friendly banter and serious discussions in the chat room. I’ve spent some spare time folding and recently there was a deadline for some of the puzzles, meaning I finally get ranked and receive my first “global points”. Folding is tricky, but there is help available 24/7 in the chat room, as players are spread all over the world in their respective time zones. For most people, it is primarily about giving a hand to research, but the game is a bit addictive, as well, and to date there are almost 29 000 activated player profiles. The software, by the way, can be used on most computers (although not on non-intel macs).
The quality of the video is much better if you watch it on the Foldit webpage.
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